The present invention relates to a corner guard assembly for protecting the corners of walls in institutional facilities. In particular, the invention relates to a corner guard assembly which includes a co-extruded vinyl retainer for the assembly.
In institutional facilities such as hospitals, elderly care centers, and other public buildings, the corner of building walls are exposed to damage from impact resulting from forceful contact with various kinds of wheeled vehicles, such as stretchers, wheelchairs, dining carts and the like. For this reason, the corners of the building wall are commonly provided with a corner guard that will protect the wall surfaces from damage resulting from the impact.
Conventional corner guards are normally comprised of an assembly that includes a metallic base plate, often made of aluminum, which overlays the wall surfaces at the corner, and further includes a resilient cover member that is attached over the base plate. Upon impact, the resilient cover member will deform absorbing the force of the impact. Examples of such conventional corner guard assemblies include the devices disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,717,968 issued to Robert W. Olsen, et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,430,883 issued to Claude P. Balzer et al, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,363,617 issued to Donald W. Miller.
Comer guard assemblies are, however, occasionally struck with sufficient force to damage the assembly. In fact, if the impact is significant enough, the cover member will be subjected to a double impact, the first impact occurring when the vehicle strikes the cover member, and the second occurring immediately thereafter when the cover member strikes the base plate. Such impacts can cause cracking, breaking, or indentations of the cover member. Severe impacts may result in a bending and disfiguration of the base plate as well. Such damage is very unsightly and produces a negative image of the facility.
Accordingly, an improved corner guard assembly is desired.
An improved corner guard assembly designed especially for use in institutional type facilities is presented. The corner guard assembly of the present invention includes a vinyl retainer base plate as well as a vinyl cover guard. More specifically, the corner guard assembly presented herein includes a novel vinyl base plate having a rigid main body portion that is applied over the wall surface at the corner combined with a co-extruded flexible impact bumper at the apex of the main body.
The present invention resists exceptionally heavy impact loads without damage or failure to the corner guard assembly. The present invention, which includes the co-extruded vinyl base plate, has been found to be several times stronger than a conventional corner guard assembly using an aluminum retainer base plate. It has also been found to be several times stronger than a corner guard assembly that includes a vinyl base plate but is without the co-extruded impact bumper.
Several other advantages are also achieved. For example, the corner guard assembly disclosed herein is substantially lighter in weight compared to conventional corner guard assemblies that include metallic based plates, which make the present invention substantially lighter than prior designs thereby facilitating easier installation and less expensive shipping. The vinyl base plate allows customers to field bend the corner guard to fit almost any angled corner. The two wall surfaces at the corner don""t have to intersect exactly at a right angle. Fastening hardware can be screwed directly into the vinyl retainer and into the wall without pre-drilling or pre-stamping holes, which is required for metallic based plates. The assembly can also be made of 100% recycled plastic.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, which, together with the accompanying drawings, sets forth by way of illustration and example certain preferred embodiments of the present invention.